Olympiacos achieved the most significant victory in the Champions League Quarter Final Stage, Round 4.
The Greeks narrowly defeated Novi Beograd at home, 16:15, having strong support from their fans. This win is more meaningful than Ferencvaros’s victory in yesterday’s derby against Pro Recco (16:14), as it brings Olympiacos closer to securing a ticket to the Final Four.
Barceloneta became the first team to mathematically qualify for the F4 in Malta. The Spaniards demolished Brescia 17:6 to continue their winning streak. Barceloneta was a big favorite, considering it has improved its shape from match to match, but few could expect that the game would turn into a one-sided contest already in the first half. After 16 minutes, Barceloneta had an 8:2 lead. An 11-goal win in the Quarter Final Stage of the top-tier competition for the clubs is a really big difference.
While the competition for the second spot in Group A remains open, today’s victory could be crucial for Olympiacos, which is now in 2nd place with 6 points, three points ahead of both Brescia and Novi Beograd. In the next round, Brescia will host Olympiacos, and Novi Beograd will play against Barceloneta at home. The Quarter Final stage will conclude with the matches Novi Beograd vs. Brescia and Olympiacos vs. Barceloneta.
Practically, only one spot at the F4 is available, because it’s almost sure that Pro Recco and Ferencvaros will advance from Group B.
2026 Champions League, Quarter Final Stage, Round 4, Group A
(quarters 6:3, 3:4, 4:5, 3:3)
Olympiacos: Angyal 3, Genidounias 3, Fountoulis 3, Zalanki 2, Kakaris 2, Dimou 1, Alafragkis 1, Nikolaidis 1.
Novi Beograd Tehnomanija: Lukic 4, Martinovic 4, Perkovic 2, Pjesivac 2, Ukropina 1, Urosevic 1, Gladovic 1.
Olympiacos earned a crucial advantage in the first quarter and, in the following three periods, managed to hold back Novi Beograd’s comeback attempts.
Novi Beograd’s center-forward Perkovic scored the first goal in the game in the 2nd minute, but, as it turned out, it was the visitors’ only lead in the game. Novi Beograd managed to equalize at 2:2, but then Olympiacos went on a 3:0 run in just two and a half minutes, scoring two goals with an extra player and one from a penalty shot, bringing the score to 5:2. Although Lukic narrowed the gap to 3:5, the hosts’ captain, Konstantinos Genidounias, converted a man-up opportunity, extending the lead to 6:3.
Konstantinos Genidounias Photo by Eurokinissi Photo Agency
The man-up conversion made the difference in the derby in Piraeus. Novi Beograd netted nine power-play goals from 15 attempts, which wasn’t bad, but Olympiacos’s conversion was almost perfect – 11 goals out of 13 shots.
In the following three periods, Novi Beograd cut its deficit to one goal nine times, but didn’t equalize. The visitors opened the second period with two goals to make it 5:6. From that point until the end of the game, the teams traded goals. Konstantinos Genidounias had the last word in the second quarter, as in the first one, by converting a penalty for 9:7.
Luka Gladovic (NBG) and Ioannis Fountoulis (OLY) Photo by Eurokinissi Photo Agency
The third period followed the same pattern. Novi Beograd, led by Lukic and Martinovic, reduced the gap to one goal five times, and Olympiacos responded with a goal on four occasions (Kakaris netted one and Angyal three goals in this period). Stefan Pjesivac closed the third period with a powerplay goal (12:13), but Fountoulis doubled the hosts’ advantage early in the fourth period. Novi Beograd chased the Greeks until the end, but unsuccessfully. Vasilije
Martinovic set the final score with 01:36 minutes left on the clock. The visitors’ last chance to equalize was a man-up attack forced with 42 seconds to go. Aleksandar Sapic, who was officially Novi Beograd’s head coach for the first time in the Champions League, called a timeout. After the break, Milos Cuk hit the post. In the dying seconds, Lukic blocked a shot from Zalanki. Novi Beograd lost, but kept a better head-to-head record against Olympiacos (thanks to a 12:10 win in Belgrade), which might be important if two teams are tied in points at the end of the QF Stage
(quarters 5:2, 3:0, 4:2, 5:2)
Barceloneta: Vigvari 5, Biel 3,Munarriz 2, Sanahuja 2, Tahull 2 Echenique 1, Gomila 1, Burian 1.
Brescia: Dolce 3, Del Basso 1, Viskovic 1, Giri 1.
Barceloneta dominated throughout the match against Brescia, with the contest effectively decided by halftime.
Brescia scored the first goal in the match, and Barceloneta responded with a 3:0 run. The visitors’ last goal in the first half came in the fourth minute, when Dolce converted a man-up. Barceloneta started dominating then. The hosts’ defense was excellent, making goalkeeper Unai Aguirre’s job easier. Vince Vigvari and Bernat Sanahuja led the hosts to an 8:2 lead at halftime.
Gonzalo Echenique Photo by Jordi López / CNAB
The Italians were without a goal for almost 13 minutes, and then scored two in the early stages of the second half. But, Barceloneta kept control. It quickly reestablished a 6-goal lead with power-play goals from Alberto Munarriz and Unai Biel. Vince Vigvari added the fourth goal to his tally in the middle of the quarter for 11:4. Alberto Munarriz increased the difference to 12:4.
The fourth quarter was a formality, but Barceloneta didn’t slow down.
Standings:1. Barceloneta 12, 2. Olympiacos 6, 3. Brescia 3, 4. Novi Beograd 3
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